Matched Funding

Matched Funding Information

Many companies in the UK offer employees the chance to boost their fundraising efforts by 'matching' the money they raise. It really is money for nothing, so you could double the amount of cash it raises with very little effort.

What is Matched Funding?

Matched giving or matched funding is an easy way to maximise individual fundraising efforts by PMRGCAuk members and volunteers. It is an informal arrangement between a company and their employee or, in some cases, pensioners of the company.

Not all companies offer matched funding but those that do will pledge a sum of money relating to the amount their employee has raised for or donated to the charity of their choice. Some organisations will match fund on a £ for £ basis, others will stipulate what they are prepared to give. It is likely that an upper limit will be applied along with certain criteria such as the recipient organisation being a registered charity. Some companies pledge time and resources instead of money, encouraging their employees and past employees to support a cause or offering a tangible service such as the opportunity to print posters, programmes, newsletters and so on.

Which organisations can support fundraising for PMRGCAuk?

It is impossible to list all the companies who offer matched funding because they all have different criteria - some will include this in their small print (for example where it's only offered to full-time staff after two years service) and schemes change frequently so a list of companies is difficult to keep up to date. Generally speaking, banks and building societies, insurance companies, supermarkets, utilities providers, phone companies and car manufacturers often offer matched funding schemes.

So it is worth checking with your employers whether a scheme is in place or if they'd be willing to set one up.

A matched funding scheme can be adopted by any company no matter how big or small. Barclays, for example, offer their employees the opportunity to match funds they raise for their chosen charity up to £750 per year and this is available for three activities a year! And Aviva, in response to feedback from their staff has introduced a '£Plus' matching scheme. This gives Aviva employees the chance to raise funds for any registered charity in which they are interested and to receive matched funds from Aviva in support.

How to get started

To get things started fundraisers (members and supporters) should ask their employers if they operate or are interested in running a matched giving scheme and if they are willing to match funds to let us know as other supporters may work or have worked for the same company so we can tell them about the scheme! At the end of this document is a list of organisations that have been known to match funds so this is a good starting point. Once the company has agreed to match funds, they will probably ask their employee to complete a request form. If this is not the case, ask the company to put their pledge in writing to PMRGCAuk.

PMRGCAuk will formally acknowledge all contributions made by companies and their employees.

How can we raise awareness?

Promote, promote, promote! The more we - you and our members and supporters - can do to spread the word about the benefits of match funding the better. Make sure you tell everyone that this way to fundraise exists. It is not complicated and costs nothing extra other than some time to talk to an employer!

Case study

Michelle Glumart, assistant secretary, Friends of Herringham Primary Academy, Essex (370 pupils) successfully received match funding from a parent at their school: 'We were approached by a parent who works for a company offering match funding for their employees - up to £6,000 per year and no more than £1,500 each time. Her company match funds against the overall amount raised at that event. There was one form to fill in for the company to prove who we were and the PTA had to provide bank account details, etc but after that it's was plain sailing. The PTA gave the parent a cheque payable to her company for the amount raised. Providing it's banked before the end of the month, the doubled amount is paid directly into our PTA bank account by the 15th. In two events, we have raised an additional £2,900 in match funding – what’s not to love about that? My advice for other PTAs is definitely find parents who can access match funding for you!’